Awards

The George Washington University Law School APALSA Daniel K. Inouye Alumni Award 2018

D.C. Bar Capital Pro Bono High Honor Roll 2015, 2016, 2017

ALI-ABA Scholarship and Leadership Award 2014

Marcus B. Finnegan Prize in IP Writing Competition, Third Place 2013

VABA-DC Outstanding Service and Dedication Award 2013

Andrew J. Sutton

Associate

Andrew “A.J.” Sutton is an associate in Ropes & Gray’s intellectual property litigation group. A.J.’s practice focuses primarily on representing clients in patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret litigation disputes. He has litigated before U.S. District Courts, the International Trade Commission, the United States Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and the Federal Circuit.

A.J.’s undergraduate degree is in Mechanical Engineering, and his coursework covered a broad array of topics including C++, organic chemistry, and robotics. In addition, A.J. served as team lead on several engineering projects, including a robotics design and building competition where his team earned second place out of forty-eight teams. While in law school, A.J. externed for the Honorable Judge Irene M. Keeley of the Northern District of West Virginia, where he worked extensively on several patent cases, including a Hatch-Waxman Paragraph IV ANDA litigation case being heard before the court.

A.J.’s pro bono practice includes representation of clients in the areas of veterans’ disability, family and domestic violence, social security disability, criminal defense, civil rights and human trafficking. A.J. is also an active member of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Washington D.C. and the GW Law alumni association.

Represented a Multinational Internet Technology Company in a defensive copyright infringement action in S.D.N.Y. Successfully obtained pre-answer dismissal of all claims.

Represented a Multinational Software Company in an offensive trademark infringement action in district court against a competitor. Obtained a favorable settlement resulting in the defendant ceasing all use of the challenged mark globally.

Barings LLC v. Simon Jacques – In administrative proceeding before the World Intellectual Property Organization, successfully acquired domain name from an anonymous squatter who purportedly registered the domain name as part of an email phishing scheme.

Represented a victim of human trafficking pro bono. Filed a T-Visa application with USCIS and successfully obtained T-nonimmigrant status for the client.

Ricchio v. McLean (1st Circuit) – Filed an amicus brief on behalf of Freedom Network in support of plaintiff-appellant. The Second Circuit, in an opinion written by retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter, sitting by designation, ruled in favor of the plaintiff-appellant and reversed the district court decision dismissing her claims under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.

Publications

Co-author, “Shielded by Sovereignty: The Implications for Patentees of Covidien v. University of Florida Research Foundation & Its Progeny,” 45 A.I.P.L.A. Q.J. 593 (Fall 2017)

News

On April 5, the First Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in a key sex trafficking case, Ricchio v. McLean, in which Ropes & Gray submitted amicus curiae brief on behalf of Freedom Network USA, a national network of ...